Kukla's Korner Hockey

Category: NHLPA

While the decision on whether or not to trigger the annual 5 percent growth factor on the salary cap has often been treated like a foregone conclusion, it should not be this season.

The issue on the growth factor, commonly referred to as the "inflator" or "escalator," has become a hot topic of conversation amongst players with growing concerns about increasing escrow rates and the potential implications on revenue with the falling Canadian dollar.

Several sources told ESPN.com that there is a divide between two camps of players: those who are already under contract for next season and those who are pending unrestricted free agents. Those already set on their current deals may be against the idea of increasing the salary cap, deterred by the thought of another season of high escrow (the players were hit with 18 percent this season). Those players up for new deals, however, would ideally like more money in the pot. The current salary cap is at $69 million. At last week's General Managers meetings, the rough projection provided by commissioner Gary Bettman was $71.5 million -- assuming the inflator was triggered.

For players, there is a growing sense of skepticism about areas of potential revenue growth, such as television deals, outdoor games, etc., compounded with concerns about the devaluation of the Canadian dollar.

On the final day of the NHL general managers meeting, the Players’ Association got its first look at rule changes being proposed for next season, most notably adding some three-on-three play to overtime.

Players will have give their input on three-on-three, expanded video review and faceoff changes and must sign off before anything becomes official.

General managers were split on whether to go to the American Hockey League model of four-on-four for the first three minutes and then three-on-three from the next whistle to the end of a seven-minute overtime or to simply play three-on-three for the existing five-minute overtime.

One concern is that the extra two minutes a game, while likely to reduce shootouts, would put more of a strain on top players.

Player-tracking technology could be implemented across the NHL next season in place of the real-time statistics it has employed for more than a decade.

Officials from the league and NHL Players’ Association met earlier this week to discuss the Sportvision system that was tested at the all-star game in January, and are believed to be working towards a deal to have it fully operational for 2015-16.

That has been the NHL’s hope since a successful initial run-through in October, but it needs approval from the union to move forward.

Don Fehr, the NHLPA’s executive director, says a proposal is currently being reviewed internally and must still be looked at by the players. Asked for his views on the test at the all-star game in Columbus, he replied: “I think there are some very interesting things there.

Will NHL players be going to Pyeongchang, South Korea, in February 2018 or not?

It's a question that's far from being answered yet.

"We haven't had any discussions about it," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman told ESPN.com Wednesday. "And I said in Columbus [at the All-Star Game], this decision about the World Cup has no bearing on that decision. We're focused right now on the World Cup. When we get to discussing and evaluating the Olympic opportunity, that decision -- whether or not we go or not go -- will rise and fall on the merits of making that decision."

NHLPA executive director Don Fehr agreed with Bettman's characterization of the Olympic decision not being tied to the return of the World Cup.

"Yes, I think that's a correct statement, that the Olympics have to be evaluated on their own, and you have to get the right kinds of agreements with the IIHF and the IOC," Fehr told ESPN.com Wednesday. "Assuming you can, it's no secret what the players' position is going to be. But this [World Cup] is something we would do if we had already decided to go to the Olympics or if the Olympics had shut down and you never had them again. It wouldn't matter."

Donald Fehr is still the executive director after earlier declaring he didn’t think he would be in the job for very long, but if he wants a project to consider, he might start working on what must surely be annoying to the players — the NHL’s persistence in markets where hockey is obviously not working.

We refer here mostly to Florida and Phoenix, and to a slightly lesser extent, Carolina. And if you really wanted to cast the net wide here, New Jersey as well, although their New York market television deal keeps them in solid shape in the revenue game.

Commissioner Gary Bettman is loathe to move any franchises out of what he claims is loyalty to the fans in these cities, and to some degree, that’s laudable. But let’s be clear here, it’s also to make sure he doesn’t have to move these teams into markets they have targeted for expansion. Why move Florida or Phoenix into a ripe city for expansion when there is no way a transfer fee could be anywhere near as high as an expansion fee for the owners, a source of revenue in which the players do not share? They do, however, get the increase in jobs, and like any union, this one is all for increasing its membership and thus their own revenues, so expansion is essentially a win-win for both parties.

- NHLPA talking head Mathieu Schneider was a fine D-man, but he’s got to be kidding with the ridiculous analysis that the top guys will be fatigued by having to play an extra few shifts of 3-on-3 OT if the AHL model moves to the NHL. A few extra shifts? Tired? That’s why the top guys are making $6 mil and $8 mil and $10 mil a year. So they maybe have to play LOTS of MINUTES!

- I’m a huge Darryl Sutter fan but I’m beginning to think the Kings have little left in the tank. They might gut it out to still make the playoffs but they can’t score. They get shut out (six times) or score one goal (another seven) way too often to think they can win another Cup. Sad, but there’s a lot miles on that LA team.

- *I’ve given up figuring what second-pairing NHL D-men should be making on the open market when teams stupidly throw money around, so I those not to laugh when I heard Cody Franson, an average NHL blueliner would be in the $5.5 mil range on July 1. He’s a 35-point NHL D-man. I guess if Matt Niskanen can get 7 years at $5.75 mil in Washington last summer, anything’s possible. He had 51 points and was plus 33 in his UFA year in Pittsburgh and is predictably back to being what he really is (17 points, plus 3) now.

NHL players have reservations about a potential move to use three-on-three play in overtime next season to decrease the number of games decided by shootouts.

"My real concern is that top guys are going to be put in these situations, and there will be more wear and tear on them," NHL Players' Association executive Mathieu Schneider told USA TODAY Sports.

The rules change, to be discussed at the annual general managers meetings in March, has gained traction with GMs because the use of three-on-three this season in the American Hockey League has resulted in 74.8% of overtime games being decided before the shootout. That figure is 45% in the NHL.

This is just the beginning. When the NHL and the NHL Players’ Association stage the 2016 World Cup of Hockey in Toronto – featuring the Big Six nations, plus a team of other Europeans and one of 23-and-under North Americans, unfortunately – it will be the first step in what NHL commissioner Gary Bettman called their “joint vision for international hockey.”

“The aspiration,” said John Collins, the NHL’s chief operating officer, “is to build a global brand and a global business.”

The NHL and the NHLPA announced the World Cup on Saturday at the All-Star Game. But they are working on a Ryder Cup concept – say, a best-of-5 series between North American and European NHL stars in a city like London or Berlin in 2018. They’re researching expanding eligibility requirements so NHL players who can’t make their national teams can represent other nations where they have roots – say, England or Italy. They hope to hold a qualifying tournament in 2019 to fill out the 2020 World Cup, so they don’t need teams of other Europeans and 23-and-under North Americans and the World Cup can become a pure nation-on-nation tournament.

New York/Toronto (January 24, 2015) – The World Cup of Hockey will return in September 2016 in Toronto, Canada when eight teams, comprised of the world’s best hockey players, compete for a best-on-best international hockey championship, the National Hockey League (NHL®) and National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) announced today. The World Cup of Hockey is a joint effort of the NHLPA and the NHL, in cooperation with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). It is expected that more than 150 of the best players in the NHL will participate in this tournament in what should be the biggest celebration of the game.

The eight teams will be divided into two Groups of four, and each will compete in three tournament games within their assigned Group in a round-robin format. The top two finishers in each Group will advance to a single game semi-final against a team from the other Group. Winners of the semi-final games will advance to a best-of-three final round. All tournament games (round-robin, semi-final and final) will be played at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto from September 17 - October 1, 2016.

“We are thrilled to partner with the NHLPA in planning and producing what we expect will be the world’s best international hockey tournament,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. “The 2016 World Cup of Hockey will highlight not only our global reach, but also the skill and passion of the world’s best athletes. We would like to thank our international partners – the IIHF and their members – for their cooperation in helping to make this event a reality.”